Akheem Mesidor’s ‘flow of emotions,’ OJ Frederique’s confidence and more Hurricanes notes
Akheem Mesidor sees the progress. He feels he’s getting better with each passing week.
But he still doesn’t feel he’s playing up to his standard.
The Miami Hurricanes’ defensive lineman is in the middle of an adjustment period. He’s almost exclusively playing defensive tackle now after normally being an edge rusher. Plus there’s the fact that it’s his first full season back after injuries to both of his feet limited him to just three games in 2023.
“It’s been a flow of emotions,” Mesidor said. “Some days I feel like I’m going well, some days I feel like maybe I’m overthinking. Sometimes I get too into my head, but it has been big adjustment for me. I’m just trying to continue to strive and get better and better every week.”
On the season, Mesidor has 13 tackles, including four-and-a-half tackles for loss which ranks fifth on the team.
“I just want to be more destructive,” Mesidor said. “Sometimes, I think a little bit too much. There’s a lot that goes with playing a tackle in our defense. There’s a lot of thinking to do, a lot of different roles we have.”
Fellow defensive tackle Simeon Barrow, who has been Mesidor’s main partner on the interior of Miami’s defensive line, praised Mesidor for his work ethic and performance so far this season.
“I believe he’s been playing great,” Barrow said. “Maybe statistically it doesn’t really show it, but his technique has been really great and he’s been helping other people make plays.”
Frederique’s progress
Among players from the Hurricanes’ talented 2024 recruiting class, perhaps none earned the trust of the coaching staff quicker than defensive back OJ Frederique.
The St. Thomas Aquinas alumnus has played in every game this season and logged two starts while getting reps in key situations on game day.
Last Saturday against Louisville, Frederique played 49 defensive snaps, more than double that of any other UM true freshmen (fellow defensive back Zaquan Patterson was second with 21 snaps), and he allowed just one catch on three pass attempts against him for 6 yards in the 52-45 win.
Frederique said older defensive backs such as Daryl Porter Jr., Jadais Richard and Damari Brown helped him get acclimated to college football. Coaches having the faith in him to play a big role right from the start of his college career has helped, too.
“My teammates have given me confidence every day,” Frederique said. “Going against the best of the best every day [in practice], my confidence only grew.”
The offensive stat the Hurricanes prioritize
The Hurricanes’ offense is among the best in the nation in a slew of key categories.
But there is one that offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson is most impressed with: Miami is averaging 8.05 yards per play, more than a quarter-yard ahead of the next closest team (Boise State at 7.79 yards per play).
“We’ve made an emphasis to be explosive,” offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson said Monday. “Our yards per play is high, our total number of punts are low, and our third down [conversion rate] is high. That’s probably three that dictate you being on the field longer. So yards per play is huge. That one is very telling of an offense, but the other two are telling about keeping the keeping the ball on your side.”
He said it
“It was kind of said in fall camp; it’s what we wanted. We want the whole room to be ready to go. We say it every day. We want everybody to be able to get in the game and just make an impact, do the job and execute. Whenever someone’s in, we just feed off each other’s energy and make sure everyone in the room is ready.” — Damien Martinez on the Hurricanes’ running backs embracing a by-committee approach to the position
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